Sacrificial Scripts, Blood Values and Gender in the Twilight Vampire Narrative Grietje Dresen 1 Introduction I’d never given much thought to how I would die. But dying in the place of someone I love seems like a good way to go. These sentences, pronounced by protagonist Bella Swan in the overture to the first Twilight film, are a forecast of things to come. Above all, they forecast the role Bella is going to play throughout the Twilight Saga, willingly sacrificing (or at least risking) her life for the ones she loves: For her mother, her beloved vampire fiancé Edward, and her unborn, half-vampire child. The sentences in the overture echo the Preface in the first Twilight novel, where the same thoughts are expressed in the context of a mysterious scene in which the ‘I’-figure (appear- ing to be Bella) is being threatened by a ‘hunter’. In the prologue to the film, this impression of being hunted is symbolized by the accompanying imagery, show- ing a defenceless deer chased through a dark wood. In this chapter, I intend to analyse the sacrificial scripts that underlie the storyline in the Twilight Saga, an immensely popular vampire narrative devoured by millions of mainly female adolescents all over the world. From the moment I saw the first Twilight screenplay together with my daughter, I was struck by Bella’s unhesitating willingness to sacrifice her life, announced (in Bella’s voice) in the prologue. Of course my view is affected by the fact that I am a scholar of religion, and a gender scholar too. From that perspective, the gender scripts in the Twilight book series and film versions seem astonish- ingly conventional at first sight. Bella is presented as an average, rather clumsy high school student, alternately submissive and self-conscious to her male counterparts, and eager to sacrifice herself at crucial moments in the series. By contrast, the main male characters are depicted as supermen, strong, fast and brave (in fact superhuman), and utterly in control. Nevertheless, millions of teen-aged girls throughout the world adore the story and its characters. Is their adoration to be explained as a longing to return to traditional gender roles, as a correction to both outdated feminism and post-feminism? Does the Saga appeal to an everlasting desire in (young) women to be safeguarded by a hero against the evils that come with adulthood? Many feminist reviewers © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, ���7 | doi ��.��63/9789004335530_0�� 182 Dresen criticized the romantic idealization of Bella’s awkwardness in Twilight, namely her constant need of male protection – protection from her own sexual desires, to begin with. Still, we should assume the countless fans to be modern, eman- cipated young adults, not victims of false consciousness. So, what is it that fas- cinates them? 2 The Twilight Phenomenon Before I continue outlining my questions, let me briefly introduce the Twilight phenomenon. Speaking of ‘Twilight’ in general, I refer to the four-book series, the screen adaptations, and an online partial draft (see below). The first vol- ume and film were also called Twilight. I refer to this first volume in italics. Twilight was published in 2005.1 Three volumes followed quickly, New Moon (2006), Eclipse (2007) and Breaking Dawn (2008).2 On her website, the Twilight creator, Stephenie Meyer, published what she called “my original character development exercise, Edward’s version of Bella’s [story]”3 – Twilight is written from Bella’s perspective.4 This version in Edward’s voice, picturing his harsh inner conflicts and ordeal, is titled Midnight Sun. Up to now,5 four Twilight screen adaptations have been released, in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 respectively. These films added a lot to the world-wide hype; the actors cast for the main characters6 are worshipped as if they were the godlike creatures they play. The last novel is filmed in two parts; part II of this Breaking Dawn adaptations will be released on November 16, 2012. The plot of the Twilight vampire narrative is basically romantic: A common high school student, Bella Swan, falls in love with a gorgeous fellow student, who appears to be a vampire, and a ‘good’ vampire too. He and his family (all 1 I refer to the British Atom paperback editions. Twilight was first published in the U.S. by Little, Brown. In, Twilight (ed. S. Meyer; London: Atom, 2007), the page numbers differ slightly from the original Little, Brown edition. In the other volumes I quote, page numbers do not differ from the original editions. 2 Stephenie Meyer, New Moon (London: Atom, 2006; 2007); Stephenie Meyer, Eclipse (London: Atom, 2007; 2008); Stephenie Meyer, Breaking Dawn (London: Atom, 2008). 3 See www.stepheniemeyer.com, Midnight Sun, Partial Draft 4 (2008) and Meyer’s comments. She published this draft (retelling the first half of Twilight) in response to illegal distribution. 4 The Epilogue in Eclipse and the middle part in Breaking Dawn are written from the perspec- tive of Bella’s werewolf friend Jacob. 5 November 2011. 6 Kristen Stewart (Bella Swan), Robert Pattinson (Edward Cullen) and Taylor Lautner (Jacob Black). The Twilight franchise successfully exploits their immense popularity..